KBC

Bartel Puelinckx holds a Master's degree in applied economics from KU Leuven and a law degree from the Université Libre de Bruxelles. He joined KBC in 1992, beginning in trade finance, and held roles including CFO of KBC's Czech subsidiary ČSOB, CEO of KBC Securities NV, and Senior General Manager of Group Compliance. In September 2024 he became CFO of KBC Group and joined its Executive Committee.

Christine Van Rijsseghem holds a Master's Degree in Law from the University of Ghent and an MBA in Financial Sciences from the Vlerick School. She joined KBC in 1987 and held various roles including CEO of KBC France and KBC London before becoming Senior General Manager of Group Finance. Since 2014 she has served on the Executive Committee of KBC Group as Chief Risk Officer.

Elisa Vlerick began her career in 2010 as a corporate lawyer at Allen & Overy working on M&A and restructurings, then spent time on the group legal team at Novartis. After completing an MBA at IMD, she worked as global Corporate Development Manager at SGS and later as a real estate investment manager and legal & tax counsel at Vlerick Group. Since 2020 she has been a Partner at Ninepointfive Ventures, an industrial technology venture capital fund, and holds board seats at Recticel Group, K&H Bank, and KBC Group. She holds a Bachelor's in History from King's College London, Master's and postgraduate law degrees from the Catholic University of Louvain, and an MBA from IMD.

Erik Clinck holds Master's degrees in Applied Economics from the University of Antwerp and in Internal Audit and Corporate Governance from the Aix-Marseille Graduate School of Management. He began his career as an auditor at KPMG Belgium in 1985, serving as audit partner from 1996 to 2018 and as a member of the management team overseeing Markets and Marketing from 2010 to 2018, with accreditation to audit financial institutions, funds, insurers, and listed companies. He holds several board and committee roles, including at Cera Beheersmaatschappij, Vanbreda Risk & Benefits, and Unibreda NV, and is a non-executive director on the KBC Group Board.

Koenraad Debackere, born in Ghent in 1961, studied electrical engineering and management sciences at the University of Ghent and MIT, earning a Ph.D. in the latter field. Since 1995 he has been a professor of technology and innovation at KU Leuven's Faculty of Economics and Business, working with the university's technology transfer organization, and since 2022 he chairs Associatie KU Leuven. He serves as chairman and independent director of the KBC Group board, chairing its Nomination and Remuneration Committees, and previously held directorships at technology companies and investment funds.

Kristine Wolcott Braden is a global banker who spent 26 years at Citigroup in senior roles, most recently as Europe Head, CEO and Board Member of Citibank Europe Plc in Ireland and CEO and Management Board Member of Citigroup Global Markets Europe AG in Germany, with experience across Europe, Asia, the US and Latin America in corporate and investment banking, markets, transaction services and wealth management. She holds a BA with Honours in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley, studied at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, and completed masters-level corporate finance and accounting coursework at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies. She currently serves as a board director at Vontobel Holdings and Vontobel Bank AG and as a senior advisor to Frontier Tech Capital.

Line Merethe Hestvik is an executive with over 25 years of experience in the insurance and financial industry, having held operational P&L and strategic roles. She held positions at Storebrand and If P&C, serving as Head of Business Area Private If P&C Nordic (2005–2012) and as a member of the Sampo Group Executive Committee, later becoming Head of Global P&C at Allianz SE (2013–2019) and global Chief Sustainability Officer at Allianz SE (2021–2023). She holds a Master of Business and Economics specializing in finance from the Norwegian School of Management BI.

Sonja De Becker holds a Master's degree in Law from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven and began her career as a legal advisor at Boerenbond in 1990. She held several leadership roles within the Boerenbond Group, including becoming its first female General Secretary in 2001 and later its Chairperson, and remains Chairperson of the financial holding company MRBB. She serves as a non-executive director on the Board of Directors of KBC Group, representing core shareholders, and sits on its Nomination Committee and Risk and Compliance Committee.